DIY Stationery for Valentine’s Day

It’s super fun and easy to make your own handmade stationery for Valentine’s Day. Here are three simple techniques for folding ordinary copy paper into an origami envelope, making heart-shaped stamps and stickers, and creating glue from sweet-smelling gummy bears. Let’s get started!

How To Make The Stamps

What You Need

Copy Paper A4, white or colored

Pencils with rubber erasers

Lint roller

Baker’s twine

Ink pads: red, orange, blue, and green

Bottle caps and craft foam for the heart-shaped stamps

Heart-shaped stamp pen

Note: If you’re making these with young children, it’s best to use washable ink or watercolors.

Step 1Ink the pencil erasers and make dots all over the paper. Use at least two different colors. Let it dry.

Step 2 To make the stamps, use bottle caps and craft foam and follow my tutorial for making holiday stamps. Instead of cutting tree shapes, make hearts. It’s best to plan on making these the day before, so that the glue has time to dry.

Ink the heart-shaped stamps with red and orange ink and press all over a piece of paper.

Step 3 Stick the baker’s twine to the lint roller in the shape of two dinosaurs. Ink the twine and roll it over the paper. Tip: If you only cover half of the lint roller with your shapes, add a line of twine around the top of the roller to keep the adhesive from sticking to the paper.

Fold the top-left corner down to meet the crease. Fold the bottom-right corner up to meet the crease.

Fold the left and right sides to meet the edges of the first folds.

Fold the two corners inward so that they meet in the middle.

Open up your envelope to write a note.

Close it again by tucking the corners under the flaps at the edges.

Turn it over and address your letter!

The envelope itself can be your letter with your valentine’s note written inside. Or cut a small card to fit in, if you like. If you decide to fill it with some sweets, cover the gap with stickers or tape or add a small piece of paper on top of the candy.

How To Make The Stickers

What You Need

Copy paper, A4 and white

Colored paper

Black marker

5 to 6 gummy bears*

Small glass and a brush

Small pan with water

Ink pads, red and orange

Heart-shaped stamps made from bottle caps and craft foam (see above)

Heart-shaped stamp pen

Heart-shaped hole punch

Scissors

* Vegans: Use pectin or seaweed extracts with sugar and your favorite flavoring instead of the gummy bears.

Step 1Design your own stickers by drawing or stamping a lot of hearts on the paper. Draw some funny faces or animals.

Step 2Heat the gummy bears carefully on low heat in a small glass inside a pan with a bit of water. The bears should melt after 5 minutes, then you’ve got a perfect gelatin glue. You could use the microwave too.

Step 3Brush the glue over the backside of the paper. If the glue starts to get jelly-like again, just reheat it. Let it dry until it’s not sticky anymore (about 6 hours).